


Tony Makes Pepper CEO

by sunbean72



Series: Then [1]
Category: Avengers, Iron Man - Fandom, Marvel
Genre: Gen, I can't imagine, Tony Stark Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Has Issues, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, and Tony - Freeform, and again, and having to trust her and JARVIS, and knowing you have to secure a legacy, and pepper, but not wanting anyone to know why, dying, it's honestly, not having anyone BUT her, thinking about his parents
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-17
Updated: 2017-12-17
Packaged: 2019-02-15 10:57:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13029588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunbean72/pseuds/sunbean72





	Tony Makes Pepper CEO

Tony stumbled slightly as Pepper moved away, and she reached for him and steadied him as she had many times before. Perhaps irritably or reluctantly, but always, she kept him from falling. He glanced around as if looking for what he'd tripped over, and she laughed at him a little. She probably thought he was being clumsy, thought it was the champagne, which was fine. 

He really didn't need JARVIS to tell him he should tell her about the palladium poisoning. It was kind of a no-brainer. But she was annoyed and ranting, and if there had been an appropriate moment, it had come and gone by this point because now she honestly seemed so happy, he'd surprised her, but she was happy he could see that. She was grinning for the first time in a month and he didn't want to ruin it now, didn't want to waste it. "Careful," she teased, squeezing his arm, and he resisted the urge to shrug her hand away. Because the truth was, he didn't want her to know. He didn't want help. He didn't want anyone else to suffer. He didn't want their pity or their grief. He didn't want anything from anyone except what they couldn't give which was their care and comfort and understanding without him having to tell them. He wanted them to stop being angry but he didn't want to stop doing the things that were making them angry.

And he _really_ didn't want to think about his feelings for Pepper Potts, because whatever they were they were wasted, they were useless, they would do nothing but cause pain and destruction and he _wouldn't_ do that.

Yeah, he was going to have to tell her. He would. He was working on that, he wanted them to have some privacy, but now wasn't a good time. 

It was going to hurt her, he knew; he knew she cared about him, she'd stayed by his side for too long, through too much trauma for him to deny it. Since he'd found out that the palladium was slowly poisoning him and he would die of it, he'd thought nearly every day of how he was going to tell Pepper Potts, and he still had no idea how to do it without hurting her.

So he argued. He bickered. He teased her and baited her.

He pushed her away. 

He didn't know what else to do.

 _You're going to get yourself killed, Tony. And I'm not going to be part of it._ Something inside him twisted sharply and he rubbed his chest surreptitiously; it couldn't be time to change the core yet, he'd done it not the long ago, but he felt the drag, the pain beginning already.

"I'll get ahold of legal. You're sure about this. Right?"

"I told you." He fluttered his fingers at her dismissively with a smirk.

"Okay." She gave him a wide smile, her green-blue eyes lit up with excitement and happiness. She bit her lip and smiled, a little thing she did sometimes, it sent an ache through his heart. "Yes. Legal. And I'll start looking for a suitable replacement. Also, we should--" he covered her mouth; now he'd have to wash his hand, she was definitely sick, but he didn't want to be party to the million things already running through her pretty little redhead. She pulled back but was still smiling. She leaned over and embraced him. Surprised, for a moment he did nothing, but then carefully he put his arms around her. _For one second,_ he told himself, and he just let himself hold her, smell her shampoo and perfume, feel her warmth. It wouldn't last. He knew that. He held the elusive moment as long as he could. Her happiness. Her being pleased with him. 

The door closed behind her when she left and Tony signaled JARVIS to blackout the windows. He watched U cleaning up the stuff he'd knocked off the counter when hanging up the picture of the Iron Man, not really focusing on it, not really seeing, not really anything.

He was haunted by the specter of his own death. _Thank you. For saving my life,_ he'd said to Ho Yinsen, who was dying. It had felt important to him that Yinsen know he was grateful, though in a matter of moments it wouldn't truly matter anymore.

_Don't waste it._

He looked around the lab, trying to see it as if for the first time. It was his safe place, his sanctuary. Pepper had questioned the wisdom of an underground, enclosed workspace, given his experience almost a year ago in Afghanistan, but he loved it. It was the opposite of the cave. Everything in here was under his absolute control, he was absolutely and completely safe. No one would ever harm him here, and JARVIS had somewhat become like Yinsen, a silent observer, a means of encouragement and feedback and a sounding board. The lab was _awesome._ It was always the perfect temperature, tending toward warmth and brightness. He made everything state-of-the-art, clean. It was the inversion, the defiance of the cave, and he wondered what his dad would think of it. Howard's lab, in his memory, lived as an organized chaos, a treasure trove to a curious child. Organized was a loose term, but Howard knew where everything was, and to his mind, everything was where he wanted it. It had been dirtier, too; lots of interesting, not entirely unpleasant smells to his child self. He liked the grease. He liked the mechanical. The sounds had fascinated him. His father tolerated him, within certain parameters, seeking to foster his learning, to give a small drink to the thirst of his curiosity and knowledge. They'd worked for hours at a time on the cars as Howard showed him how the engine worked, how every piece no matter how small and insignificant seeming made the car run. 

He thought maybe Howard would like the lab, despite the differences to his own. He was fairly certain his mother would have as well. She would be, she would be proud. 

But maybe not proud of this moment.

Maybe they would be a bit disappointed. Probably? Or would they know he'd done his best? He'd just given away everything the Stark family had built. The company. He'd placed into capable hands, yes. There was literally no one more competent on the face of the planet. She'd steer things right. She'd lead the company with intelligence and compassion, with courage and with brilliance, he had no doubt of it. He believed and trusted in her without question.

But still.

There was a framed picture of his mom and dad. Howard wasn't looking at the camera, but off camera, at some horizon. His face was relaxed and happy, with none of the frowning disapproval Tony usually associated with it. His mother looked just how he remembered her, though. Her large brown eyes were staring directly at the camera, at him, full of happiness, laughter, and a quiet somberness behind it all. "I'm sorry," he said quietly to the happy couple. He'd carried this company since he was twenty-one, and been invested in it his entire life. "I've done the best I could." Instead of a weight off his shoulders, giving control of the company to Pepper felt like one more burden, one more thing to shoulder and carry and he wasn't sure now he could bear the weight of it. Pepper had said something about a drink. He thought he'd make good on that.


End file.
